Don't Skimp on the Attorney

When confronted with a multitude of closing costs on the purchase or sale of their apartments, buyers and sellers are often tempted to save money by hiring a cut-rate real estate attorney. To the consternation of their agents, many even use non-real-estate specialists: you know, those lawyers who have "done a few closings" but make their living handling divorces or personal-injury cases. We know you love your Aunt Barb, and she means well when she offers to save you a few grand by donating her services, but does she understand the difference between a co-op and a condo? The purchase or sale of your most valuable asset is not the time to be penny-wise and pound-foolish. "This isn't a pair of jeans that you can return the next day if you don't like them," says attorney Stephen Allen of Midtown's Katz & Matz PC. "This is a major financial and emotional investment, so be smart."

Everyone loves to feel like a smart consumer and save a buck, and a good real estate agent will negotiate the best deal possible on your purchase, and work equally hard to capture maximum value from your sale. When it comes to legal representation, however, you want someone seasoned and savvy, someone who looks at contracts, board-meeting minutes and building financials all day, every day. And the good ones, with a staff that can keep things moving fast without missing key details, aren't exactly cheap.

So when the time comes, ask your real estate agent, or a friend or neighbor who has recently bought or sold in your area, for a recommendation or two, and make sure the attorney is based in the borough where you are buying or selling.

Ways a novice real estate attorney can blow your deal

Not responding quickly enough. I've seen this too many times. If you're a seller who has finally found a buyer in a slow market, you need to get into contract ASAP, before your buyer gets distracted by another unit and backs out. Is your attorney keenly tuned in to current market conditions? Does she have enough staff to keep things moving?

Being combative. Sure, you want an attorney who will fight for your interests, but you don't want a chest-beater with a fragile ego. Your lawyer should stay focused on your interests the entire time, and not treat the other attorney as an adversary in every single interaction. "This is one area of law that should be the least adversarial, as we all have the same goal: to close," Allen says. "They want to sell, you want to buy, let's make this stress-free. The only thing we should be arguing about at a closing is what the best Chinese food is in the neighborhood the buyer is moving into."

Raising (false) red flags. One of your legal team's most important tasks is reviewing the condo or co-op board-meeting minutes and the building's financial statements. A low reserve fund, for instance, is not necessarily a deal-breaker. Remember, condos and co-ops are not for-profit institutions, and some like to run close to the bone to keep common charges or maintenance low. Your attorney should weigh this against the building's overall financial story over time: whether there have been recent assessments, how high the common charges or maintenance are, and what major work has recently been done on the common elements (roof, boiler, outdoor spaces, gym and so on). A good attorney will see the bigger picture; a part-timer will blow up the deal over a trifle and congratulate himself for "saving" you.